Nils Pratley on finance + Mining | The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance+mining
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Rio Tinto changes its designated driverhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/dec/04/rio-tinto-changes-designated-driver-sir-mick-davis
<p>World’s second-biggest mining company bows to behind-the-scenes lobbying and ditches Sir Mick Davis as its choice for chairman</p><p>Congratulations, Simon Thompson, current non-executive director of Rio Tinto, you are deemed sufficiently safe to step up to the chairmanship. The world’s second biggest mining company didn’t describe the appointment in this way, of course – but nor did it refer to the extraordinary behind-the-scenes lobbying that killed the hopes of the board’s original preferred candidate, Sir Mick Davis.</p><p>It was already known that the process had been hijacked by big shareholders, who had written to Rio to say they weren’t keen on Davis, the former boss of Xstrata and the current chairman of the Conservative party. But the blistering tone of the now-leaked letter is worth noting. It is hard to recall a similar instance of a board of a large FTSE 100 company being read the riot act over the appointment of a chairman.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/dec/04/rio-tinto-changes-designated-driver-sir-mick-davis">Continue reading...</a>Rio TintoMiningBusinessUS economyDonald TrumpTrump administrationStock marketsDow JonesEconomicsUS newsCorporate governanceMon, 04 Dec 2017 18:47:16 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/dec/04/rio-tinto-changes-designated-driver-sir-mick-davisPhotograph: HANDOUT/ReutersPhotograph: HANDOUT/ReutersNils Pratley2017-12-04T18:47:16ZTesco boss got the Booker deal past the watchdog – can he convince investors?https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/nov/14/tesco-booker-deal-investors-cma-shareholders
<p>The CMA’s decision to clear the £3.7bn takeover is baffling, and seems unlikely to get the thumbs-up from all shareholders</p><p>The Competition and Markets Authority rarely fails to surprise. The watchdog worked itself into a fine fury a couple of years ago over the obscure merger between Poundland and 99p Stores. It eventually reached the commonsense conclusion that the deal would not deliver a fatal blow to competition on the high street, but it needed two attempts to get there.</p><p>Now, presented with the more substantial £3.7bn takeover of Booker by Tesco, the CMA has declared that it can’t see why anybody would make a fuss. Small convenience stores should not worry about Tesco getting even bigger. The catering trade will be unaffected, apparently. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/nov/14/tescos-37bn-takeover-of-booker-given-green-light">The deal can proceed without remedies</a>.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/nov/14/tescos-37bn-takeover-of-booker-given-green-light">Tesco's £3.7bn takeover of Booker given green light</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/nov/14/tesco-booker-deal-investors-cma-shareholders">Continue reading...</a>TescoCompetition and Markets AuthorityRetail industrySupermarketsBusinessRio TintoMiningRegulatorsVodafoneTelecommunications industryWed, 15 Nov 2017 09:52:58 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/nov/14/tesco-booker-deal-investors-cma-shareholdersPhotograph: John Morrison / Alamy/AlamyPhotograph: John Morrison / Alamy/AlamyNils Pratley2017-11-15T09:52:58ZTop executives may be brilliant – but their pay's about timing and luckhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/mar/13/top-executives-may-be-brilliant-but-their-pays-about-timing-and-luck
<p>Surely long-term bonus schemes, the biggest driver of boardroom inflation, have had their day?</p><p>If you are the chief executive of a FTSE 100 company, and thus the recipient once a year of oodles of share-based incentives worth several times your £1m-ish salary, the quickest way to get seriously rich is as follows. First, trash your price. Second, wait for your incentive shares to be awarded at the bottom of the market. Third, lead the glorious recovery. Even if you succeed only in getting the share price back to the original starting point, a V-shaped journey is much more lucrative than going sideways in boring fashion. You will collect a windfall gain. Long-term shareholders will just hold an asset restored to its former value.</p><p>There is no suggestion that Mark Cutifani, chief executive of Anglo American, has used sleight of hand to manufacture a windfall gain for himself. Indeed, it would be impossible to do so. Anglo’s share price, as with all the big miners, is blown about by forces beyond its control – such as the prices of iron ore, coal and copper. The point, though, is that the V-shaped passage of Anglo’s share price in the past two years has boosted the value of Cutifani’s share awards in a manner that seems perverse.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2017/mar/13/anglo-american-bonuses-shareholder-revolt">Anglo American caps bonus payouts after shareholder revolt</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/mar/13/top-executives-may-be-brilliant-but-their-pays-about-timing-and-luck">Continue reading...</a>Executive pay and bonusesAnglo AmericanSharesBusinessInvestmentsMiningMoneyAmecWood GroupUK newsTue, 14 Mar 2017 13:35:14 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/mar/13/top-executives-may-be-brilliant-but-their-pays-about-timing-and-luckPhotograph: Liam Bailey/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Liam Bailey/Getty ImagesNils Pratley2017-03-14T13:35:14ZBusiness rates: this toxic row will return unless we find a fairer alternative | Nils Pratleyhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/feb/21/business-rates-alternative-tax-property
<p>Basing the tax purely on property makes no sense in the digital age – and can only deepen resentment</p><p>It’s a bit rich for the chancellor, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/feb/21/hammond-in-listening-mode-on-business-rates-after-backlash-from-tories">now reportedly in “listening mode” on business rates</a>, to signal that he is aware of the challenges the digital economy presents to a property-based tax. That fundamental problem has been voiced for more than a decade and has simply been ignored by government. Amazon and the other big online retailers are no longer modern creations.</p><p>Philip Hammond, one suspects, will end up inventing various reliefs to try to quell the anger of those small businesses in London facing increases of up to 400%. But something more than a sticking-plaster is required. If not, this toxic row will return every time potential rents – the basis for establishing rateable values – are recalculated.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/feb/21/hammond-in-listening-mode-on-business-rates-after-backlash-from-tories">Hammond in ‘listening mode’ on business rates after backlash from Tories</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/feb/21/business-rates-alternative-tax-property">Continue reading...</a>HSBCBankingBHPMiningBusinessUK newsTue, 21 Feb 2017 19:16:28 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/feb/21/business-rates-alternative-tax-propertyPhotograph: Andy Rain/EPAPhotograph: Andy Rain/EPANils Pratley2017-02-21T19:16:28ZGSK needs no medicine despite talk of poor performancehttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/feb/08/gsk-needs-no-medicine-despite-talk-of-poor-performance
<p>GlaxoSmithKline’s new chief inherits a business with healthy profit growth and has no need for drastic remedies</p><p>If you had reinvested your dividends along the way, you would have enjoyed a 116% return on your money by owning GlaxoSmithKline shares in the nine years since Sir Andrew Witty became chief executive. That record is much better than the FTSE 100 index’s, but poorer than AstraZeneca’s, which is one reason why the perception persists that GSK has been a laggard.</p><p>In its sharpest form, the theory runs that GSK would be better broken up into its constituent parts – pharmaceuticals, consumer healthcare and vaccines, plus the ViiV joint venture in HIV therapies. Lauded fund manager Neil Woodford once described GSK as being four FTSE 100 companies bolted together.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/feb/08/gsk-needs-no-medicine-despite-talk-of-poor-performance">Continue reading...</a>GlaxoSmithKlinePharmaceuticals industryRio TintoMiningHousing marketReal estateBusinessSajid JavidPoliticsUK newsWed, 08 Feb 2017 19:49:04 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2017/feb/08/gsk-needs-no-medicine-despite-talk-of-poor-performancePhotograph: HANDOUT/AFP/Getty ImagesPhotograph: HANDOUT/AFP/Getty ImagesNils Pratley2017-02-08T19:49:04Z'Billionaire spiv' debate about Sir Philip Green was entertaining but absurd | Nils Pratleyhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/oct/20/billionaire-spiv-debate-about-sir-philip-green-was-entertaining-but-absurd
<p>The former BHS owner had done little to deserve a knighthood in the first place so MPs’ outrage over his conduct seemed naive</p><p>The Commons <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/oct/20/philip-green-labelled-billionaire-spiv-in-commons-debate-on-knighthood">debate on Sir Philip Green’s knighthood</a> was entertaining – or as entertaining as a debate can be when all sides agree the fellow is a damned rascal who should not have been given a gong in the first place.</p><p>Iain Wright, chair of the business select committee that co-authored the report on the demise of BHS, provided the most memorable line. “He took the rings from BHS’s fingers, beat it black and blue, starved it of food and water, put it on life support and then wanted credit for keeping it alive.” It could serve as a reverse citation if the honours forfeiture committee removes the knighthood, as it surely will unless <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/philip-green">Green</a> very quickly presents a large cheque to cover the deficit in the BHS pension fund.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/oct/20/billionaire-spiv-debate-about-sir-philip-green-was-entertaining-but-absurd">Continue reading...</a>Sir Philip GreenBHSDominic ChappellHouse of CommonsRetail industryPoliticsBusinessUK newsBHPRyanairMichael O'LearyAirline industryMiningThu, 20 Oct 2016 20:15:11 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/oct/20/billionaire-spiv-debate-about-sir-philip-green-was-entertaining-but-absurdPhotograph: PAPhotograph: PANils Pratley2016-10-20T20:15:11ZBHP Billiton faces legal spat in which all tactics are deemed fairhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/may/04/bhp-billiton-compensation-brazil-dam-disaster
<p>Brazilian prosecutors’ £30bn claim over the 2015 dam disaster shows they aim to extract the maximum sum by any means</p><p>It is ridiculous for the Brazilian independent prosecution service to argue that the damages for the disaster at Samarco, an iron ore operation owned by Vale and BHP Billiton, should be the same as those paid by BP after its Deepwater Horizon catastrophe in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. There is no link between the two incidents.</p><p>But the pointed reference to Deepwater Horizon in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/may/04/bhp-billiton-faces-30bn-compensation-claims-over-brazil-dam-disaster">the 155bn real (£30bn) claim</a> tells BHP and its local partner they now face a proper legal fight in which all tactics are deemed fair. The prosecutors’ aim is clearly to extract the maximum sum by whatever means.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/may/04/bhp-billiton-compensation-brazil-dam-disaster">Continue reading...</a>BusinessNextBHPMiningRetail industryJ SainsburyLondon Stock ExchangeSupermarketsWed, 04 May 2016 18:09:37 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/may/04/bhp-billiton-compensation-brazil-dam-disasterPhotograph: Christophe Simon/AFP/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Christophe Simon/AFP/Getty ImagesNils Pratley2016-05-04T18:09:37ZAnglo American's pay drama shows discretion is a dirty word for somehttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/apr/21/anglo-americans-pay-remuneration-formula
<p>Pay committees need to stop waving their formulas, hiding behind remuneration consultants and start providing leadership</p><p>Anglo American got off lightly. A 42% revolt against the pay report was less than the 59% <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/apr/14/bp-pledge-shareholder-anger-ceo-bob-dudleypay-deal">seen at BP</a> last week, but was bound to be. The BP row was about actual rewards – notably chief executive Bob Dudley’s £14m – whereas the Anglo affair involved sums that may be paid to executives in future. Passions always run higher when pay has already been trousered. The moral of both tales, however, is the same: boards should know when to use common sense.</p><p>The bone of contention at Anglo was the granting of three times as many incentive shares to executives than a year ago. How did that happen? Because Anglo’s share price had fallen 75% and executives’ incentives are calculated as a percentage of salary; thus a lower share price equalled a greater number of incentive shares.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/apr/21/anglo-americans-pay-remuneration-formula">Continue reading...</a>Executive pay and bonusesAnglo AmericanBusinessMiningThu, 21 Apr 2016 19:06:50 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/apr/21/anglo-americans-pay-remuneration-formulaPhotograph: Mujahid Safodien/AFP/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Mujahid Safodien/AFP/Getty ImagesNils Pratley2016-04-21T19:06:50ZThere's nothing anti-American about the EU investigating Google | Nils Pratleyhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/apr/20/theres-nothing-anti-american-about-eu-investigating-google
<p>If it seems like only US technology companies are being targeted, that’s only because they are so dominant</p><p>Is Margrethe Vestager, the EU competition commissioner, on a mission to undermine Google? And has the commission, steeped in 12 years of conflict with Microsoft, got a problem with the entire US technology industry? In less exaggerated form, some US voices may make the argument. <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/apr/20/eu-commission-google-android-skew-market-competition-antitrust-vestager">Vestager’s latest inquiry</a>, into alleged monopoly abuse of the Android operating system, is Brussels’ second Google probe in 12 months.</p><p>“We have no grudge against any company,” says Vestager. “We have an obligation to look at whether behaviour is anti-competitive or an abuse of dominance.” That’s what you’d expect her to say, of course. But she’s surely correct: the complaint of anti-Americanism is a distraction, and it also seems plain wrong.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/apr/20/eu-commission-google-android-skew-market-competition-antitrust-vestager">EU accuses Google of using Android to skew market against rivals</a> </p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/apr/19/senior-port-talbot-staff-buyout-plan-tata-steel-plant">Senior Port Talbot staff ‘to announce buyout plan for Tata Steel plant’</a> </p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/apr/15/more-companies-risk-shareholder-anger-excessive-pay-deals">More companies risk shareholder anger over excessive pay deals</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/apr/20/theres-nothing-anti-american-about-eu-investigating-google">Continue reading...</a>GoogleEuropean UnionAlphabetSteel industryBusinessEuropeTechnologyWorld newsWalesUK newsBPAnglo AmericanEnergy industryMiningOilCommoditiesOil and gas companiesExecutive pay and bonusesWed, 20 Apr 2016 18:45:14 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/apr/20/theres-nothing-anti-american-about-eu-investigating-googlePhotograph: Francois Lenoir/REUTERSPhotograph: Francois Lenoir/REUTERSNils Pratley2016-04-20T18:45:14ZGSK's wisdom is its dullness – there's no need for a break-uphttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/mar/17/glaxosmithkline-gsk-andrew-witty-neil-woodford-break-up
<p>Departing Andrew Witty has been wise with GlaxoSmithKline. Neil Woodford is making the wrong call here</p><p>GlaxoSmithKline must be addicted to exciting succession scraps. Back in 2007, when the <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/mar/17/gsk-chief-andrew-witty-to-leave-drugmaker-pay-package">now departing Sir Andrew Witty</a> landed the chief executive’s job, the affair was long and bloody. Three internal contenders were invited to pitch their ideas in a semi-public shoot-out. Witty, the youngest and most junior executive, won and the disappointed duo wouldn’t stay for love nor share options. They departed within months.</p><p>It was a bracing experience and not one you’d think <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/glaxosmithkline">GSK</a> would wish to repeat. There is every chance it will. Witty won’t leave until next March, which creates plenty of time for plots, intrigue and manoeuvring.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/mar/17/gsk-chief-andrew-witty-to-leave-drugmaker-pay-package">GSK chief Andrew Witty to leave drugmaker</a> </p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2013/jan/17/rio-tinto-mining">The Albanese years at Rio Tinto: a squandered opportunity</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/mar/17/glaxosmithkline-gsk-andrew-witty-neil-woodford-break-up">Continue reading...</a>GlaxoSmithKlineRio TintoBusinessMiningPharmaceuticals industryOffice for Budget ResponsibilityRoyal Bank of ScotlandBankingGeorge OsborneThu, 17 Mar 2016 19:57:49 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/mar/17/glaxosmithkline-gsk-andrew-witty-neil-woodford-break-upPhotograph: Sang Tan/APPhotograph: Sang Tan/APNils Pratley2016-03-17T19:57:49ZLSE and Deutsche Börse: an Anglo-German pact in the shadow of Brexithttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/feb/23/lse-and-deutsche-borse-an-anglo-german-pact-in-the-shadow-of-brexit
<p>Consolidation is a fact of life in the stock exchange game, but this proposed merger is far from a done deal </p><p>The London Stock Exchange and Deutsche Börse pick their moments. The duo’s first set of merger talks, way back in 2000, created a storm when both parties appeared to suggest that share prices in London would soon be quoted in freshly-minted euros.</p><p>This time, the negotiations come at the start of the <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/feb/20/eu-referendum-timetable-uk">UK referendum campaign</a> in which the prime minister has claimed the City of London will be safe from continental meddlers. Cue, almost certainly, wails of anguish from some quarters about the potential loss of a great British institution. No wonder LSE and Deutsche tried to invoke visions of happy European harmony with <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/feb/23/london-stock-exchange-in-merger-talks-with-deutsche-borse">their talk of “a merger of equals.”</a></p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/feb/23/lse-and-deutsche-borse-an-anglo-german-pact-in-the-shadow-of-brexit">Continue reading...</a>London Stock ExchangeMergers and acquisitionsBusinessEconomicsStandard CharteredBHPBankingMiningRio TintoTue, 23 Feb 2016 19:55:10 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/feb/23/lse-and-deutsche-borse-an-anglo-german-pact-in-the-shadow-of-brexitPhotograph: Suzanne Plunkett/ReutersPhotograph: Suzanne Plunkett/ReutersNils Pratley2016-02-23T19:55:10ZBig mining finds what goes up must come downhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/feb/11/big-mining-finds-what-goes-up-must-come-down
<p>Rio bosses once would have expected to be fired for breaking the unwritten rule that a big miner’s dividend should only increase – that’s not going to happen now</p><p>Bang, there goes another fat FTSE 100 dividend. <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/feb/11/rio-tinto-loss-in-2015-metal-prices-mining-dividend">Rio Tinto is scrapping its “progressive” dividend policy</a>, pausing only to let down its income-hungry shareholders gently. The dividend for 2015 will be the same as for 2014 – $2.15 a share. The shock will come in 2016’s payment – “not less than 110 cents.” And, by 2017, anything is possible: the board will form a view at the time, taking account of all relevant factors, blah, blah.</p><p>Once upon a time, a Rio chief executive could expect to be fired for breaking the unwritten rule that a big miner’s dividend should only ever increase. That is not going to happen to Sam Walsh.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/feb/11/big-mining-finds-what-goes-up-must-come-down">Continue reading...</a>Rio TintoBusinessHSBCMiningBankingGoogleOil and gas companiesTechnologyAlphabetThu, 11 Feb 2016 19:50:41 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2016/feb/11/big-mining-finds-what-goes-up-must-come-downPhotograph: Aaron Bunch/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Aaron Bunch/Getty ImagesNils Pratley2016-02-11T19:50:41ZSports Direct risks a lasting stain with its grubby behaviourhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/dec/09/sports-direct-risks-lasting-stain-grubby-behaviour
<p>Penny-pinching can get you a long way, but Mike Ashley must eventually realise that a reputation for plain nastiness can be bad for business</p><p>Mike Ashley, the founder of Sports Direct, is a retailing genius, they say. Subscribers to that school of thought may be untroubled by <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/dec/09/how-sports-direct-effectively-pays-below-minimum-wage-pay">this paper’s revelations</a> about grim working conditions at the company’s huge Shirebrook distribution centre in Derbyshire.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/dec/09/sports-direct-warehouse-work-conditions">A day at 'the gulag': what it's like to work at Sports Direct's warehouse</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/dec/09/sports-direct-risks-lasting-stain-grubby-behaviour">Continue reading...</a>Sports Direct InternationalRetail industryAnglo AmericanMiningGlencoreRolls-RoyceBusinessWed, 09 Dec 2015 19:49:56 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/dec/09/sports-direct-risks-lasting-stain-grubby-behaviourPhotograph: AlamyPhotograph: AlamyNils Pratley2015-12-09T19:49:56ZAnglo American defies 'value that lasts' motto in drift to foot of FTSE 100https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/dec/08/anglo-american-mining-shares-cheaper-ftse-100-tesco
<p>Shares in mining company now cheaper than when it arrived on market in 1999 – while Tesco is another company down on its luck</p><p>“We create value that lasts,” proclaims Anglo American’s website. Try telling that to the shareholders. </p><p>The shares, down 12% on Tuesday, have fallen 90% since high points in 2008 and 2011 and are now cheaper than when the 98-year-old mining company arrived on the London stock market in 1999. By market capitalisation, Anglo – extraordinarily – has drifted to the bottom end of the <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/dec/02/morrisons-g4s-and-meggitt-lose-out-in-ftse-reshuffle">FTSE 100 index</a>. The equity is worth just £4.6bn. Even Mondi, the obscure packaging and paper outfit that Anglo demerged in 2007, is more valuable these days.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/dec/08/anglo-american-slashes-assets-as-metals-slump">Anglo American to slash workforce by 85,000 amid commodity slump</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/dec/08/anglo-american-mining-shares-cheaper-ftse-100-tesco">Continue reading...</a>Anglo AmericanBusinessMiningStock marketsSharesInvestmentsMoneyLondon Stock ExchangeFTSETescoSupermarketsRetail industryTue, 08 Dec 2015 19:52:42 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/dec/08/anglo-american-mining-shares-cheaper-ftse-100-tescoPhotograph: Bloomberg/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesPhotograph: Bloomberg/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesNils Pratley2015-12-08T19:52:42ZSaudi Arabia's $640bn questionhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/dec/07/saudi-arabias-640bn-dollar-question-oil-price
<p>Opec’s plan to keep the oil gushing and kill off the US shale industry ignores the fact that producers will adapt to survive</p><p>So much for the idea that the US shale industry would be killed by Saudi Arabia’s high-risk strategy, adopted a year ago, of keeping Opec’s taps open and flooding the market with supplies. After 12 months of this experiment, it is Opec that is in chaos. Meanwhile, US oil production has barely been dented. Volumes have fallen 5% in the past six months, but the backdrop was a shale-driven 50% increase in production between mid-2012 and mid-2015, according to US government data. In short, the Saudis have gained next to nothing.</p><p>No wonder the price of <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/dec/07/opec-plan-kill-us-shale-oil-price-down-seven-year-low">Brent crude now stands at a near seven-year low of $41 a barrel</a>. And no wonder last week’s meeting of the Opec cartel ended in chaos. The members were expected to agree only small production cuts but, in the event, they couldn’t even manage a token gesture. The Saudis don’t trust the Iranians to cut production, and thus the outcome was stalemate, accompanied by screams of anguish from the likes of Venezuela. Opec will continue its strategy of attrition, not because its members are enthusiastic, but because they can’t agree to change course.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/dec/07/opec-plan-kill-us-shale-oil-price-down-seven-year-low">Opec bid to kill off US shale sends oil price down to near seven-year low</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/dec/07/saudi-arabias-640bn-dollar-question-oil-price">Continue reading...</a>OilOil and gas companiesBHPCommoditiesEnergy industryMiningBusinessMon, 07 Dec 2015 18:58:57 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/dec/07/saudi-arabias-640bn-dollar-question-oil-pricePhotograph: Lucy Nicholson/ReutersPhotograph: Lucy Nicholson/ReutersNils Pratley2015-12-07T18:58:57ZMorrisons shows living wage need not sound death knell for retailershttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/29/morrisons-national-living-wage-retailers-supermarkets
<p>The supermarket chain will be paying a lot more than most of its rivals once its living wage-topping increase kicks in. Grumbling retailers should take note</p><p>Unexpected things are happening to shop-floor wages in retail land. Last week prosperous John Lewis was grumbling that it might have to restructure staff benefits, including the annual bonus, to pay for George Osborne’s “national living wage” of £7.20 an hour for over-25s from April. Now, travelling in the opposite direction, comes supposedly stricken Morrisons, which is lifting basic pay by 20% to £8.20 hour, a rate greater than the living wage as defined by campaigners.</p><p>There are a few subclauses to Morrisons’ improvement. A rate of time-and-a-half for Sunday shifts will be abolished, though affected staff will not be out of pocket as the new system is adopted. A variety of supplements, for butchers for example, are being reorganised into a single rate. And paid breaks will no longer exist.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/29/morrisons-national-living-wage-retailers-supermarkets">Continue reading...</a>BusinessMorrisonsBHPGlencoreRetail industrySupermarketsMiningTue, 29 Sep 2015 18:48:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/29/morrisons-national-living-wage-retailers-supermarketsPhotograph: Bloomberg/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesPhotograph: Bloomberg/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesNils Pratley2015-09-29T18:48:00ZGlencore should have prepared better for China slowdownhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/28/glencore-prepared-better-china-slowdown
<p>Mining-cum-trading house whose share price fell 29% on Monday should have learned from 2008 commodities bust </p><p>“We should see the start of a period of price appreciation for commodities in general.” So said Ivan Glasenberg in August last year, before proceeding to bet Glencore’s balance sheet on that happy outcome. The mining-cum-trading house hiked its interim dividend by 11% and launched a $1bn share buyback.</p><p>Any temptation to pay down borrowings, which then stood at $37bn, was resisted. The important thing, declared Glasenberg, was to “leverage tightening commodity fundamentals” – in other words, take full advantage of the good times around the corner.</p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/sep/28/glencore-how-did-it-go-so-wrong-again">Glencore: how did it go so wrong, again?</a> </p><p> <span>Related: </span><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/sep/28/shell-has-frozen-its-arctic-oil-drilling-but-the-fight-isnt-over">Shell has frozen its Arctic oil drilling –&nbsp;but it's still hungry for fossil fuels</a> </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/28/glencore-prepared-better-china-slowdown">Continue reading...</a>GlencoreBusinessRoyal Dutch ShellCommoditiesMiningChinaSharesMon, 28 Sep 2015 19:05:37 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/28/glencore-prepared-better-china-slowdownPhotograph: Roland Magunia/BLOOMBERG NEWSPhotograph: Roland Magunia/BLOOMBERG NEWSNils Pratley2015-09-28T19:05:37ZTime to dig deep? Big miners face a big problemhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/24/time-to-dig-deep-big-miners-face-a-big-problem
<p>Most industrial commodities are oversupplied, with the feared slowdown in China only deepening the miners’ woes</p><p>How severe is the crisis in the world of over-borrowed big miners? Here’s an illustration. Anglo-American, a company founded in 1917, employing 148,000 people around the world and generating sales last year of almost £20bn, now has a stock market value of £8.7bn.</p><p>By contrast, Next, the clothing chain with a £4bn turnover, is worth £11bn. Even Whitbread, pumping out Costa Coffees rather than digging for diamonds, coal and iron ore, is within a whisker of Anglo’s market value.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/24/time-to-dig-deep-big-miners-face-a-big-problem">Continue reading...</a>MiningBusinessChinese economyUS interest ratesEconomicsCommoditiesGlaxoSmithKlinePharmaceuticals industryFinancial Conduct AuthorityRegulatorsPayment protection insuranceInsuranceMoneyThu, 24 Sep 2015 18:54:48 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/24/time-to-dig-deep-big-miners-face-a-big-problemPhotograph: Ivan Alvarado/Reuters/CorbisPhotograph: Ivan Alvarado/Reuters/CorbisNils Pratley2015-09-24T18:54:48ZMove aside, Martin Winterkorn, and let someone else drive VWhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/22/move-aside-martin-winterkorn-and-let-someone-else-drive-vw
<p>It is surely impossible for Volkswagen chief to survive emissions-rigging scandal – in a UK-listed company he would be long gone </p><p>It’s still early days in the great Volkswagen emissions scandal but, even at this stage, shocked shareholders – not to mention the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, US regulators and customers – would surely have expected to hear something more substantial from the company’s top brass than various refrains of “we totally screwed up”.</p><p>Those words came from the company’s US boss. Back in Europe, the chief executive Martin Winterkorn’s version was that Volkswagen “betrayed the trust” of millions of people and no stone will be left unturned to discover what went wrong. And, by the way, nobody is resigning – at least not yet.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/22/move-aside-martin-winterkorn-and-let-someone-else-drive-vw">Continue reading...</a>BusinessVolkswagen (VW)Hillary ClintonMiningAutomotive industryTue, 22 Sep 2015 20:22:04 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/22/move-aside-martin-winterkorn-and-let-someone-else-drive-vwPhotograph: Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty ImagesNils Pratley2015-09-22T20:22:04ZMegaBrew merger refreshes parts of the City other deals fail to reachhttps://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/18/megabrew-merger-refreshes-parts-of-the-city-other-deals-fail-to-reach
<p>It is by no means certain that the huge merger of two brewing and drinks giants will happen – it is not a done deal</p><p>The temptation is to think that, just because a deal has been rumoured for ages, it’s bound to happen. In the case of Anheuser-Busch Inbev’s <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2015/sep/16/anheuser-busch-inbev-sets-sights-on-sabmiller">plan to buy SABMiller to form a $275bn brewing colossus</a>, most of the City seems to have rushed to that conclusion.</p><p>The “MegaBrew” is likely to come into being, the analysts almost all agree, as they draft their debt and leverage calculations and price up the parts of SAB that AB Inbev would be obliged by competition authorities to sell. The arithmetic works if SAB rolls over at about £39-£44 a share, runs the general thinking.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/18/megabrew-merger-refreshes-parts-of-the-city-other-deals-fail-to-reach">Continue reading...</a>Food & drink industryMergers and acquisitionsSABMillerBusinessLidlLiving wageNational living wageMinimum wagePayMoneyRetail industrySupermarketsMiningCorporate governanceThu, 17 Sep 2015 23:01:02 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/business/nils-pratley-on-finance/2015/sep/18/megabrew-merger-refreshes-parts-of-the-city-other-deals-fail-to-reachPhotograph: Daniel Munoz/ReutersPhotograph: Daniel Munoz/ReutersNils Pratley Pratley2015-09-17T23:01:02Z